Accenture: Workforce Diversity and the Evolving Role of the CIO

October 18, 2018 by Swati Singh

SAP partner and customer Accenture is taking an innovation-led approach to help clients “imagine and invent” their future.

In a conversation with CXO Talk’s Michael Krigsman, Accenture Chief Information Officer Andrew Wilson discusses the ever-evolving nature of his role and the increasing focus on the experience and expectations of clients, stakeholders, and employees.

On the CIO’s focus on experience:
“My role really, I don’t think, isn’t just CIO anymore; I think I’m a chief experience officer. My focus is on delivering the right experience, both in work and out of it, for all of those workers, all of our clients, all of the business leaders, [and] all of the businesses, which I run. When it comes to technology, it sets a really high bar for me, and so that’s really where we are right now… I think the experience theme really is the new digital for me. Experience is all around presenting information in a language and in a way which human beings recognize. We don’t need to create things that operate to serve the company. We need to think about how things are presented to an individual. How does an individual see Accenture? How do they become attracted to the brand? How, with all of this information, knowledge, and creativity, can they stay current, relevant, learn, and be effective in this huge liquid state of new technologies?”

On the evolving challenges for digital CIOs:
“The building blocks of effective new IT are different. Platforms, absolutely; software-as-a-service platforms; capabilities with strong roadmaps like SAP S/4HANA… those are key to an IT strategy and a business strategy that can deliver at the speed of the new… Accenture’s role, in the industry, is to integrate platforms and to deliver transformational change. It’s really important that we do that to ourselves… When we move fast, and when things are so new, things that are a challenge are the scale, the speed. You can’t wait to be even a fast follower. Who are you following? In the new, you need to be the group that is being followed. We also have to make some judgment calls and place some bets because there’s a lot of choice out there.”

On diversity in workforce:
“In our talent strategy, we need to attract and retain all forms of diverse talent. There isn’t enough good talent in the world for everything we need to do. [ I’m sponsor of] global Pride at Accenture, which is the community which recognizes, celebrates, and looks after our LGBTQ community. That’s quite a broad and diverse group in its own right. I’m a gay man as well, and so I believe passionately in wanting to support tolerance, inclusion, and diversity in our culture. It’s absolutely vital and core to our talent strategy.”

Learn more about Accenture, how the company is harbinger of the future of CIO role, and its relationship with SAP in the video above.